Possess Your Soul

“In your patience possess ye your souls .” (Luke 21:19)

Too often we are tempted to do things in our own strength because this or that event or answer to prayer doesn’t come right away or in the delay that we have fixed for it.

What is synonymous with patience however is faith. You cannot have faith without patience and patience will work faith into something strong and mature. ” But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6).  Faith takes on the attitude that things will work out even though we do not quite understand how nor when, or even if they will in the way we want or expect.

The opposite is also true; impatience can cause you to get into all kinds of problems and situations that, had you exercised patience/faith, you could have avoided altogether, and these situations lead to frustration and discouragement which affect your faith in a negative way, and all because you were too impatient to wait on the Lord to see what plan He had in mind.

James writes, ” Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” (James 1:3-4) Growing in the Lord and gaining spiritual maturity is something that comes with time, it doesn’t happen overnight there is a process involved. Just like a new baby isn’t born fully formed and mature so it is with Christians who are new in the faith; Salvation (re-birth) is instantaneous upon receiving Jesus into your heart, although it doesn’t stop there, there is yet a growing and learning process that must take place, and in that process the quicker you learn the lessons of patience and faith the quicker you will mature.

So, possess your soul, be patient.